The Power of the Big Ten Network

Tanner Fritz of the Ohio State Buckeye Hockey Team

In a busy holiday weekend on the road for the Ohio State Men's hockey team, the Buckeyes gained a split with Lake Superior State in CCHA hockey action.  Capping a weekend that left the Bucks in a 3 way tie for second in the CCHA with Notre Dame and Ferris State, Senior Goal Tender Brady Hjelle was named Goaltender of the week.  At 15 points, one point behind first place Miami, the Buckeyes are in a good position as the season advances.

On Friday the Buckeyes won 4-1 up in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.  Maintaining steady scoring pressure, the Bucks scored one in each of the first two periods, and finished off the third period by scoring two goals.  Opening the scoring was 5-10, 195 lb Sophomore Matt Johnson (12 GP, 4 G, 1
A, 5 Pts, +6), with assists to 5-10, 175 lb Sophomore Chad Niddery (5 GP, 0-1-1, +1) and 6-3, 200 lb Junior defenseman Curtis Gedig (10 GP, 0-2-2, +5).    The second period goal was scored by Ryan Dzingel, the 6-0 185 lb Sophomore who has been mentioned in this space more than once.  Dzingel (12 GP, 5-5-10, -2), currently tied for third in scoring in CCHA play was assisted by 5-10, 166 lb Freshman Tyler Lundey and 5-9, 175 lb Junior Alex Szczechura (9 GP, 1-2-3, -1).

The first third period goal was scored by 5-11, 200 lb Sophomore Tanner Fritz, pictured above.  Fritz (12 GP, 2-9-11, +3), one those currently tied at third in CCHA scoring, was assisted by 6-3, 200 lb Sophomore Darik Angeli (6 GP, 1-1-2, +0).    Late in the third period Lake Superior State scored a goal, only to be answered again by the Buckeyes when 6-1, 193 lb Junior Chris Crane (12 GP, 3-2-5, +1) scored an empty net goal, assisted by Tanner Fritz.  Goaltender Brady Hjelle stopped 30 of 31 shots he faced.

What does all this have to do with the Big Ten Network you ask?  Well, I'll get to that, but I also want to take some time getting the links and descriptions of the Buckeye Hockey players down so we could start to get to know them.

Oh! Mediation!

Donald Fehr contemplates Nirvana

Today, the NHLPA and the NHL agreed to meditation to try to solve their differences in negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement.  Yogi Bikchk Swami Win Bhurds has agreed to lead them through his 12 step program of flexibility, focus, and meditation.  It is thought that the use of this program will allow the two sides to see through their differences to a level of total consciousness that will dissolve all barriers to feeding the frenzied masses the hockey that they long to see.

Gary Bettman drinks in the beauty of cost certainty

The use of meditation to solve a labor dispute is a novel approach, yet the sides resolved to 'disregard all earthly bonds in the pursuit of a more perfect existence'.  In the last lockout, the parties were unwilling to take such bold steps towards a more enlightened condition, resorting instead to a mundane, non-binding federal mediation.

Oh!  Wait!  Maybe I misunderstood that tweet!

Oh well.  The NHLPA and NHL agree to federal mediation.

GO JACKETS!!

The Curse of Elmo

Elmo gazes malevolently down from the rafters of
Nationwide Arena

He first appeared late in the 2008-09 season, after a CBJ road trip.  A production of Sesame Street had been in Nationwide Arena while the Columbus Blue Jackets were on the road, and at the next home game we looked up from our seats in Section 207 and saw the Elmo balloon, looking down at us.

Elmo watched the Jackets struggle through the end of 2008-09, dropping from a 6 seed to an 8 as they staggered through the rest of the season after clinching their only playoff birth.  He watched the most amazing sporting event ever to occur in Nationwide Arena, the rollicking thunder of that playoff Game 4 where the CBJ finally shed the shackles of tentativeness, but too late.  He presided over the shower of beer cans that saluted an untimely 'too many men' penalty in a year when the eventual Cup Champion Penguins were allowed to skate an entire shift with too many men.  And thus, the first ripples of a virulent curse were vibrated through our collective consciousness.

Since that time this Elmo balloon has stared  down at the high, but ultimately crushed hopes of four seasons.  He has inspired December collapses in multiple, years, finally advancing his influence to October, and ultimately, to September of this year, when we didn't even get a chance to start the season.  He has seen a franchise spiral from a playoff team, to a dead last finish in a short 4 years, which includes two coaching changes.  And now, he has managed to even get the All Star Game cancelled from his lofty perch in the rafters.  Yes folks, it is the curse of Elmo that is driving all of our hockey woes.

It is time, oh yes it is time, for the game ops folks to rise up, and unseat this icon of ill-luck and channel of negative karma.  I don't care how many pellet gun shots, or lifts of scaffolding it takes to get him down, but before the puck drops again in Nationwide Arena, this evil force must be removed!!

GO JACKETS!!

2013 NHL All-Star Game cancelled

Nope...not gonna happen.  (Ever?)

Yup, it's done: The 2013 NHL All-Star Game weekend has been cancelled.  Here's a link to my DBJ Plus reproduction of the letter from CBJ President Mike Priest to ASG ticket holders.

I note that no promise has been made to hold a future All-Star Game weekend in Columbus.  This is in stark contrast to the immediate awarding of the next Winter Classic to cancelled 2013 location Detroit/Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Appreciating that an All-Star Game needs an actual batch of regular season games to conduct roster balloting and the other procedural necessities related to a game, there is room for a reasonable person to ask whether the NHL knew what they were doing to Columbus - both the team and its host community - in cancelling the event.

Worse yet...if they did know, there's even more room to ask if the NHL cared.

---

UPDATE: Well whaddya know, the NHL says that they care.

ASG Down!

As expected today, the NHL canceled the 2012-13 All
Start game scheduled to be held in Columbus.  Puck Daddy has a pretty good write-up of this here.  I really don't mind this.  The ongoing lockout had rendered the notion of an All Star Game in January a mockery of all involved.  It is the right thing to do to cancel it at this point.  The NHL held on to it longer than they reasonably should.

Next up is an NHL Board of Governors meeting scheduled for December 5.  Two things can happen here.  The owners can direct Bettman to settle, or they can cancel the 2012-13 season.  There have been rumblings that the NHLPA will be considering a move to decertify, and thus attempt to move the dispute to the courts.  Cancellation of the 2012-13 season would prememptively nullify the contracts in dispute.  So if the NHLPA tries to move this to the courts, a past Fehr strategy, the NHL is in a position to question exactly what it is we are arguing about.  I expect cancellation of the season for these types of reasons.  My biggest fear is for the 2013-14 season.

Let's get that 2015 ASG scheduled right away, and give hockey fans everywhere SOMETHING on the schedule to look forward to enjoying.

GO JACKETS!!

Give Thanks!

From all of us here at the Dark Blue Jacket, we wanted to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving!  In spite of the gloom of the lockout, we have much to be thankful for, and its good to be reminded of that at times.

I am thankful that we have the privilege of having an NHL franchise in our town.  That's not all roses, I understand, and there are some teeth grinding bush league moments about the whole thing, but in the end, we are part of a long stream of history that stretches back as long at least as the NFL.  That is something no one can take away from us, and we are far from the worst team in NHL history, regardless of the statements of the internet trolls.

There are the historic exploits of the Rocket Richards of the league, and the hope for heroic exploits by Blue Jackets that have yet to pull on the sweater.  The history of hockey is a long flowing continuum, and we are already indelibly woven into its fabric.  That is something for which I am very thankful.

I am thankful that my colleagues in this endeavor have had this lockout time for their successful recruiting efforts.  We welcome the Dark Blue Twins to the fold, as well as Morgan's Raider (this will become more evident over time, trust me on this!).  The 2030 NHL entry draft promises to be a family affair!

Take the time to say a prayer of thanks to our soldiers who go into harm's way to keep us safe.  Remember  those who have paid the ultimate price in our defense.  Yes, Specialist Levi Hoover.  I'm talking to you.  Thank you.  Well done lad.  Well done indeed.

Hold your mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, and all who are near you this day in your heart, and give thanks that we are all part of this great nation.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!  GO JACKETS!!

Fifty Percent With A Ratchet

The NHLPA made the comprehensive proposal today that the NHL asked them to make.  The players insist they have made concessions and their proposal does indeed contain the words 'fifty percent'.  It also contains a ratchet that ensures that the dollar amount the player receive can never be less than the year before.  If in year three, all the big money teams pull a CBJ and start 0-9-1 and revenue comes up a bit short, no matter, the dollar amount the players get never goes down.

As a fan of a small market team there are some things I really hate about this proposal.  Right now there is a +/- of 8 million around the midpoint of revenue that sets the cap minimum and the cap maximum.  The players proposal wants to change that to +/- 20%.  Goodbye competitive balance, hello New York, Detroit, and Toronto budget busting deals that the CBJ won't be able to compete with, a situation that will get worse over time.  Revenue sharing won't cover the kind of gaps this proposal creates.

The offer changes the retirement plan from a defined contribution plan to a defined benefit plan.  That will save the owners a lot of money.  (Editor's note: sorry, I forgot to use the sarcasm font there) .The players propose to deal with front loaded contracts.  Of course, their proposal only deals with contracts longer than nine years, which means it deals with a handful of contracts.

Under the guise of 'making concessions', this offer is as draconian as some of the stupid stuff the owners have put forward.  Had the players seriously negotiated a deal around the owners proposal to play an 82 game season that started on November 1 we could have had a season, and they would have got their full pay for the season.  Meanwhile, Don Fehr is still trying to find ways around the salary cap.

Until the players tell Don Fehr to get a deal done, he will keep dancing around with offers that the owners can't accept, because they would be stone cold fools to accept them.  And the window keeps closing on guys like Derek MacKenzie and Roman Hamrlik.  I know that this sounds like I am being an apologist for the owners.  I'm not.  But I'm a fan of a small market team, caught between a NHLPA rep who thinks the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox outspending everyone else is a good system and to h*** with the small market teams, and the owners of the big market NHL squads who want the throw their cash around, but can't because of the salary cap.

For more details on the players proposal, Porty has a good write up over on Puck Rakers.

If both sides can find something that they can negotiate around, and hammer this out, that would be a good thing.  But will someone tell me what is Don Fehr's incentive is to do that?

UPDATE: Twitter feeds are saying the NHL Board of Governors is scheduled to meet on December 5.  Methinks this means the plug is getting pulled.  Good by season.

GO JACKETS!!

FSO fires up “Slap Shots in 60”

A release received today from FOX Sports Ohio:

FOX Sports Ohio and the Columbus Blue Jackets are pleased to introduce “Slap Shots in 60”, a series of 60-second vignettes highlighting Blue Jackets activities.

“Slap Shots in 60” is hosted by Dave Maetzold and Natalie Taylor, and will feature various news, relevant topics, and events surrounding the Jackets.

Fans will see “Slap Shots in 60” running throughout FOX Sports Ohio programming beginning Tuesday, November 20th.

I know, I know...the FSO Blue Jackets blogger is out there hyping FSO Blue Jackets programming.  Guilty as charged.  

At the same time, let's recognize this effort for what it is: In the middle of a mind-numbing lockout, the Blue Jackets' television broadcast partner is still trying to create meaningful content about a team that - with the exception of hiring a new top dog in hockey operations - doesn't have much happening at the NHL level.  And "doesn't have much happening" is being generous.  So good on FSO for green-lighting this project.

Lastly, I'll note that FSO has Dave Maetzold and Natalie Taylor as their on-air talent.  I am not particularly close with either (they could be great folks for all I know, but circumstances have never allowed) but greatly respect their broadcast skills and dedication to the Blue Jackets.  Mega-kudos to FSO for helping them continue to work on the beat they clearly enjoy so much, helping keep their broadcast team in the fold while we all wait out this lockout.  

Buckeyes Post 4-2 Win

Buckeyes facing off against NMU

As the football Buckeyes were wrapping up an overtime win against Wisconsin in Madison, the hockey Buckeyes were squaring off against the Northern Michigan Wildcats at the Schott.  Saturday's game showed much more flow from the start than the Friday version, and was a very entertaining hockey game.  The Buckeye power play got running enough to allow them to climb back into the game, and they went on to overpower the lesser opponent.

Ryan Daugherty got Northern Michigan on the board early by blocking a shot at the blue line, which deflected back past the Buckeye defender, and sent Daugherty in on a nice breakaway on the Buckeyes Freshman Goal Tender Colin Olson.  Daugherty made a nice move to finish, and put Northern Michigan up 1-0 with 10:17 left in the opening period.  The Buckeyes kept the pressure up, out shooting the Wildcats 13-4 in the first period, but were unable to put one in goal.

Buckeye Shutout, CBA Armageddon?, Money Ball

OSU taking on Northern Michigan

Last night Senior Goal Tender Brady Hjelle pitched a shut out against Northern Michigan as the Buckeye Defense stifled the Wildcats, limiting them to 1 (one) shot on goal in the first period, and 20 shots in the entire game. The Buckeyes were paced by a first period goal by 5-10, 185 lb Junior Travis Statchuk with the assist to Ryan Dzingel, and a third period power play goal by Max McCormick, with assists by Tanner Fritz and Ryan Dzingel.  The Sophomore Dzingel, a 7th round pick by Ottawa in the 2011 NHL entry draft seems to show up on the Buckeye score sheet with regularity.  Hitch would have loved this game.  Not a lot of dangling going on, just solid defensive hockey.

With all that said, this game left a little room for hockey related discussion, and our topics ranged far and wide.  One observation my buddy Bill made was that it looks like the time for meeting in the middle on the NHL collective bargaining agreement is rapidly drawing to a close.  Should that window close, then the outcome of the negotiations will end up being cast in terms of 'winners' and 'losers'.  Frankly, I don't see either side getting to that point without jettisoning the 2012-13 season.  And, I submit to you, that the players didn't hire Don Fehr to 'meet in the middle' or to 'lose'.  Part of the question I have in my mind involves whether the 2013-14 season would also need to be sacrificed to determine 'winners' or 'losers'.  If the owners cave to Fehr, he is going to own them like he has baseball owners for years to come.  But right now if Fehr is telling the players that the longer you wait, the better the deal, he is right so far, with the owners softening their stance on many issues.  I don't really care who 'wins' or who 'loses', but if we go back to a Don Fehr utopia where Detroit and New York have 90 million dollar payrolls, and the CBJ have a $28 million dollar payroll, I have to wonder how long I would remain engaged in the sport.  If Don Fehr is the 'winner' he needs to make it his business to take care of the small market teams.